In St. Louis yesterday, the Cardinals and the Giants had to suffer throught a 3 1/2-hour rain delay.  The Cardinals got the win, 3-1.  Matt Carpenter hit a two-run homer after coming in to the game to replace the injured Carlos Beltran.  Kyle Lohse got the win, but needed help from four Cardinal relievers.  St. Louis now leads the series 2 games to 1, and game 4 is tonight at 8:00 pm.  Adam Wainwright will start for the Cards, Tim Lincecum for the Giants.  You can watch it on FOX, Chanel 7 in Miami. 

Last night’s game between the Yankees and the Tigers was rained out.  The teams take the field today for game four at 4:00 pm.  Max Scherzer will take the mound for Detroit to try and finish the sweep, New York counters with C. C. Sabathia.  The game will be televised by TBS on your cable or satellite system.    

The Yankees have put themselves in a real touchy situation regarding Alex Rodriguez and other Yankees who are struggling offensively.  I don’t know what the situation is inside that clubhouse, so it is pointless to try and question the moves a manager makes.  A lot of managers, however, get themselves in trouble when they manage differently once they get into the playoffs.  Giving A-Rod a day-off against a tough pitcher, for example, doesn’t bother me too much, but benching him permanently during a playoff series is not the way to go.  You have to win with what got you here, and benching A-Rod and Curtis Granderson to replace them with Erik Chavez and Brett Gardner just doesn’t sit right, unless there is an injury or another problem we don’t know about.  

Rumors have been flowing that the Marlins and the Yankees would talk trade for A-Rod once the season was over.  Speculation is that the Yankees would have to be willing to cover a good portion of the $$$ due ARod, and maybe take excess weight like Heath Bell and John Buck in exchange as well.  Even though both the Yankees and the Marlins are denying these rumors, let’s analyze this possibility closely.  Third base is a black hole for the Marlins, and the possibility of bringing ARod back home to finish his career and reach all the career milestones he is looking at has to intrigue you.  Even at 38 years old, ARod, when healthy, is an incredible talent, and could benefit from playing at home.  Bottom line is that he may have worn out his welcome in NY, especially after another poor performance this series against Detroit, so the Yankees may be willing to bite the bullet and start over.  Trading superstars as they get close to the end of their careers is not unprecedented, and if you can trade Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Harmon Killebrew, why not ARod?  I’d love to hear what you think.  What would it take for you to make the trade if you’re the Yankees or the Marlins? 

TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  Only one of the top 15 home run hitters of all time in major league baseball played his entire career with one team.  Who was that?  Tell you later, alligator. 

Even though they are off this week, the Dolphins are keeping busy, and I am hearing that they are looking for some wide receiver help in a trade.  Sources are saying that they have been talking to a couple of teams, including the KC Chiefs, supposedly zeroing in on Dwayne Bowe.  Midseason trades are not the norm in the NFL, so we’ll see how these rumors pan out.    

In tonight’s edition of Thursday Night Football, the surprising Seattle Seahawks are in San Francisco to take on the 49ers.  Kickoff is set for 8:20 pm, and you can catch the game on the NFL Network.  

The rest of the NFL schedule this week:  

THURSDAY

Seattle Seahawks @ San Francisco 49ers    

SF -7.5 8:20 pm NFL Network

SUNDAY

Tennessee Titans @ Buffalo Bills

Buf -3.5 1:00 pm

Cleveland Browns @ Indianapolis Colts

Ind -1 1:00 pm

Green Bay Packers @ St. Louis Rams

StL +5 1:00 pm

Arizona Cardinals @ Minnesota Vikings

Min - 6 1:00 pm

Washington Redskins @ New York Giants

NY -5.5 1:00 pm

New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Bucs

TB +2.5 1:00 pm

Dallas Cowboys @ Carolina Panthers

Car +1 1:00 pm

Baltimore Ravens @ Houston Texans

Hou -6.5 1:00 pm

Jacksonville Jaguars @ Oakland Raiders

Oak -4 4:25 pm

New York Jets @ New England Patriots

NE -10.5 4:25 pm CBS Ch. 4

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals

Cin +1 8:20 pm NBC Ch. 6

MONDAY

Detroit Lions @ Chicago Bears

Chi -6 8:30 pm    ESPN

Bye week for the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Miami Dolphins,  Philadelphia Eagles, and San Diego Chargers.

In college football this weekend, FIU takes their show on the road this saturday when they visit Troy.  Game time is 1:00 pm, don’t miss the game broadcast (in English) on your smartphone or on the computer at www.fiusports.com.  I will be handling the play-by-play, and Pete Pelegrin will be handling the color analysis.  The University of Miami Hurricanes are coming off consecutive losses to Notre Dame and North Carolina, and they will be at the Seven Names Stadium on Saturday at 8:00 pm against Florida State.  You can watch the game on ABC, Channel 10 in Miami.  ESPN-U on your cable or satellite system.  In other games involving the top-ten teams this week, on Thursday, #3 Oregon visits Arizona State.  On Saturday, #1 Alabama is at Tennessee, #2 Florida hosts #7 South Carolina, #4 Kansas State is at #13 West Virginia, #5 Notre Dame is at home against BYU, #6 LSU travels to #18 Texas A&M, #8 Oregon State hosts Utah, Kansas is at #9 Oklahoma, and #10 USC is at home against Colorado.   

The Miami Heat return to the court tonight, here at the AAA, against the Detroit Pistons.  On Saturday, the San Antonio Spurs will come calling.  I really dislike NBA exhibition games.  

THE ANSWER TO TODAY’S TRIVIA QUESTION:  Only one of the top 15 home run hitters of all time in major league baseball played his entire career with one team.  Who was that?  Mike Schmidt, who is 15th in the all time home run list with 548.  Schmidt played his entire career in Philadelphia with the Phillies.  BTW, the 16th man on that list, Mickey Mantle, his his 536 home runs while playing only for the Yankees.  

Don’t miss my two “Descarga Deportiva” segments (for the Spanish-challenged, “Sports Jam Session”) every day, Monday through Friday, at 9:25 am and 12:15 pm on Radio Esperanza, 1550 AM or on the internet on www.miradioesperanza.com.  

Behave yourselves, and always remember that tomorrow will bring us a brand new day.